make one new recipe from each cookbook on my shelf

Ann Willan – Chicken Classics _{Greek version}

I bought this book back in 93 and so far I have only made the first recipe for roasted chicken (Chateau de Fey, if my spelling is correct).

I made the Southern fried chicken for the picnic sans the sauce.
It felt like the perfect recipe for a picnic, and it truly was!

I made the pot pie. It was incredible. I can’t wait to make it again. Basically it’s garbanzo beans and vegetables with excellent seasoning. An hour before it’s done you quickly make a dough of sorts and drop it on top. It was so delicious that my son enjoyed it as much as I did.

Community cookbooks are wonderful. Junior League cookbooks generally lead the pack in this area, but church societies, chambers of commerce, and other groups put together pretty good collections too. I like the recipes because they are usually tried and true and sure to please.

Fog City Delights is the 1987 cookbook put out by the “Letterman Auxiliary” of the Letterman Army Medical Center that used to be in the Presidio in San Francisco (it has since been torn down and replaced with the more attractive Lucas Center).

Although “Cheddary Tomato Fish Fillets” may sound dubious, it was really tasty.

2 tablespoons butter
1 pound fish fillets
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 medium tomato, shopped
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Melt butter in large skillet. Add fillets, turning to coat both sides. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the onions, parsley, and tomatoes over the fillets. Cover and cook over low heat for 7 to 9 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over the top and cover. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, until the cheese melts. Serves 4.

Other than The Joy of Cooking, this was the first cookbok I ever owned. The recipes now seem “so ‘80s” to me—but that isn’t a bad thing. I am often nostalgic for those ‘80s treats I used to make, like these “Toffee Bars” that were easy and very good:

1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg yolk
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9×12 baking pan.
2. Cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolk; beat well.
3. Sift in flour, mixing well, then add vanilla. Spread batter in greased pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
4. Cover cake layer with chocolate chips and return to oven for 3 or 4 minutes.
5. Remove pan from oven and spead melted chocolate evenly. Sprinkle with nuts. Cool in pan completely before cutting.

About 30 bars.

The only change I made was adding a little salt to the batter because I used usalted butter.

Friends from Minneapolis gave me this cookbook from their favorite restaurant, Cafe Brenda—a “seafood and vegetarian cuisine” restaurant. I made the White Bean and Squash soup, which was not bad, but a little bland. It benefited from doubling the herbs and adding a healthy dose of hot sauce and a little butter melted on top (what wouldn’t?).

The paraphrased version of the recipe is:

Soak 1 cup of dried navy beans eight hours or overnight.

To make the soup, bring beans to boil in 5 cups water. Reduce heat, simmer for about an hour or until tender. Drain.

Sauté in olive oil for about 5 minutes: 4 garlic cloves, chopped; one large shallot, chopped; one medium onion, chopped.

Add 3 ½ cups peeled, cubed (1”) winter squash (butternut).

Combine squash/onion mix with cooked beans, 4 cups vegetable stock, ½ teaspoon dried basil, ½ teaspoon dried oregano, and ¼ teaspoon dried thyme. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered until squash is tender (about 20 minutes).

Puree soup in batches in blender or food processor. \

Return to pot and add ¾ cup half and half; salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 6.

Every once in a while, without prompting that I know of on my part, I receive a cookbook in the mail from Cook’s Illustrated. Every time it happens I am a bit annoyed…until I open the book. Ok so sure I didn’t ASK for them to send it to me but now that I look through the pages…GODSEND!

Tonight I made the skillet baked ziti. It was quick and vegetarian. I happened to have everything on hand. Everyone liked it a lot. They won’t crave this dish but they won’t be disappointed to see it on the table either. Did I mention exactly how easy it was? No boiling pasta. Gotta love that!

I read this odd book over vacation last week. It is mostly commentary on food and cooking, with a few recipes in the back—sort of like an MFK Fisher book, but without the cache. I do not know anything about the author, George Jacobs, or why he wrote a book about cooking. He is not a chef. I gather that he is some kind of bon vivant, artist, occasional ex-pat who enjoys food. His musings are mildly interesting, but nothing memorable. Maybe I could write a book about food?

I tried to make burre blanc sauce following his directions. It didn’t work at all. It was melted butter with some shallots and a slight vinegary flavor. It never got thick.

I’ll try again someday.

By Leanne Ely

This book is fabulous. The recipes are easy and healthy. Occasionally I find them very smart as well. Like how in a lot of ground beef recipes she adds uncooked oatmeal. It adds bulk and fiber and not a single person in my family knew there was any oatmeal there at all.

Another smart technique is how she tells you to make extra…say mashed potatoes so that you can use them for Shepard’s pie the next night. This was very helpful.

I’ve made the following:

Crockpot Pea Soup (A+)
Baked Rigatoni (A+)
Greek Pasta (B)
Garlic Lime Chicken (A+)
Tuna Fusilli ( C )

Next up: Green chile and chicken casserole.

This book is one of my favorites and it really has helped “Save Dinner”.

I made hot fudge two nights ago. In fact there is still some in the refrigerator calling my name.

A while ago I made the frozen vanilla yogurt from this book as well. Both things I’ve made turned out really well. This book is divine. Every recipe is mouth-watering.

I finally made homemade baklava like my hubby’s mother used to make—from her old cook book. A little labor-intensive, but not difficult. Super yummy and it got even better after about two or three days.